Jesus Youth Movement & More

Let us hold fast to this treasure in earthen vessels (2 Cor 4:7) From a spirituality of rigidity and control to one of spontaneity, respect, and joy (A note for reflection, to Jesus Youth International Council and International Vision Team, 10 May 2023) I am at Amoris Christi As most of you know, I am here in Florida, moving on to a new phase in my life. I already shared with some of you that my sojourn here is a time of a new search and learning for me. I was here for a few days last year when Sunil and Sindhu asked me if I could continue to be present here. After some reflection, I said ‘yes,’ realizing that the Lord is doing something special here, the like of which I have not seen in Jesus Youth elsewhere, and I need to learn from this new culture and dynamic.  What highlights do I observe here that will be useful for Jesus Youth in general? i. A deep relational community in which, though people live apart and have their own careers, they voluntarily share their lives and parti...

  Set apart for the new mission   JPII, JY, and the New Evangelization (Published in Jesus Youth International Newsletter) I was on a crowded bus from Dindigul to Cochin. Though past midnight on that cool October night in 1978, the excitement from the previous day’s meeting with Fr Fio still lingered. He was the National Chairman of the Catholic Charismatic Renewal in India. On his suggestion in the previous May, I had been entrusted with the task of mobilizing youth from all over Kerala. Eventually, we made plans for a large youth conference later in December. But he wouldn’t make it to the Conference, so with our animator Sr Cleopatra CMC, I went to Dindigul to get Fr Fio’s vision for the conference follow-up that he had suggested. “So many of you youth have already come together, and now it is a time for focused growth,” he said. “Communities of formation reaching out with a sense of mission. This must be your vision”. More excitement awaited me when my bus reached the...

  Synodality in Jesus Youth (JY Int’l Assembly 2022 – Session 2 – 18 Nov 2022 - Dr Edward Edezhath) “It is precisely this path of synodality which God expects of the Church of the third millennium,” said Pope Francis at the commemoration of the 50th anniversary of the institution of the Synod of Bishops. He stressed that synodality “is an essential dimension of the Church”, in the sense that “what the Lord is asking of us is already in some sense present in the very word 'synod’.” In October 2021, Pope Francis announced a two-year process of listening and dialogue of the Catholic Church, known as the “Synod on Synodality.” - 'Synod' from 2 Greek words - Sun - together; Hodos - way/journey >> Synod = journeying together >> Synodality = Journeying together mentality. Understanding Synodality Synodality means journeying together as the People of God. It is a way of listening to each individual person as a member of the Church to understand how God might be speakin...